Lead Family Advocacy Case Manager

Lead Advocate

The primary focus of this position is to follow the mission of People Serving People's Advocacy Program which is "to provide opportunities for stability to families through support, education, and referrals." The Lead Advocate is responsible for serving a caseload of families through building rapport and trust with them while assessing their individual needs. The Lead Advocate works with families to identify a plan from shelter towards housing and complete next steps to reach that goal.

The Lead Advocate performs an initial orientation with families through which the family's needs are assessed, an action plan is implemented, and connections to service providers are created. This action plan focuses on goals towards stable housing, income, and wellbeing. The Lead Advocate then follows up with the family on the goals set at the orientation and reassess their needs and next steps.

The Lead Advocate is also responsible for providing leadership, case consultation and support to the Family Advocates, in addition to leading and representing the Advocacy Team in cross-departmental meetings. The Advocacy Team uses strength-based practice and motivational interviewing with the families at People Serving People to affirm the guest's strengths and help them realize their own potential.

Candidates with lived experience of homelessness, that are BIPOC, or another marginalized identity, are encouraged to apply.

* Please note:

This is an in-person role without the ability to work remotely, Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:30pm.

• Provide day-to-day coaching, and support to Family Advocates at assigned site.
• Conduct regular case consultation and assist staff in developing housing-focused intervention strategies for families with complex needs.
• Review caseloads and workflows to support equitable distribution of work and timely service delivery.
• Monitor documentation quality, program compliance requirements, and adherence to Advocacy Program practices.
• Support onboarding, training, and skill development of new Family Advocates.
• Identify practice concerns, policy questions, and staff support needs and communicate them to the Advocacy Services Manager.
• Provide input to performance evaluations and participate in performance improvement planning as requested by the Advocacy Services Manager.
• Facilitate site-based Advocacy Team meetings, case conferences, and peer learning opportunities.
• Serve as the primary site-level resource for complex guest situations and cross-departmental coordination.
• This position will primarily function out of our Fed Plaza shelter location, however providing Advocacy supports at other People Serving People shelters will occasionally be required.
• Actively participate and represent the Advocacy Team in cross-departmental and community meetings.
• Assist with monthly statistics on usage of Advocacy services and outcomes.
• Assist in organization, delegation and upkeep of Advocacy Team tasks and projects.
• Utilize experience to support harder to serve families with more challenging barriers to housing.
• Keep track of department donations and ensure that they are sorted through and put away promptly.
• Provide leadership and support for the Advocacy Team in the Advocacy Services Manager's absence.

• Maintain a case load of shelter families including keeping up to date on required paperwork from the county and state level, meeting with the residents to work towards self-identified goals, and support residents while staying in shelter.
• Listen to and offer support to residents while working with them on next steps and solutions.
• Utilize translation services to effectively communicate with individuals who speak languages other than English.
• Write referrals for resources and services.
• Assist families with employment needs (Examples: resume, cover letter, job searching, etc.)
• Make phone calls on behalf of clients. Advocate in-person on behalf of clients (Example: meetings with other service providers) as needed.
• Communicate effectively with other service providers to coordinate the best service for the client.
• Address concerns from other PSP staff and outside agencies directly to the family involved and work with the family to create a solution.
• Recognize needs for mental/chemical health services and coordinate with Mental and Chemical Health Coordinator onsite.
• Use creative problem-solving skills to come up with solutions for a variety of concerns/issues/situations that come up with families.
• Provide some material needs under emergency circumstances (Examples: clothing, stamps, tokens, envelopes, baby supplies, etc.).
• Organize and accurately keep track of records regarding the family while entering these records in a timely manner into the CRM database and HMIS.
• Follow Mandated Reporting guidelines.
• Understand the MN Data Privacy Laws and obtain releases from families prior to speaking about them with other service providers.
• Assist with onsite services provided by the Advocacy staff…